Augmented Reality for Spatial Perception in the Computer Assisted Surgical Trainer

Abstract

Traditional laparoscopic surgery continues to require significant training on the part of the surgeon before entering the operating room. Augmented Reality (AR) has been investigated for use in visual guidance in training and during surgery, but little work is available investigating the effectiveness of AR techniques in providing the user better awareness of depth and space. In this work we propose several 2D AR overlays for visual guidance in training for laparoscopic surgery, with the goal of aiding the user's perception of depth and space in that limiting environment. A pilot study of 30 subjects (22 male and 8 female) was performed with results showing the effect of the various overlays on subject performance of a path following task in the Computer Assisted Surgical Trainer (CAST-III) system developed in the Model Based Design Lab. Deviation, economy of movement, and completion time are considered as metrics. Providing a reference indicator for the nearest point on the optimal path is found to result in significant reduction (p < 0.05) in subject deviation from the path. The data also indicates a reduction in subject deviation along the depth axis and total path length with overlays designed to provide depth information. Avenues for further investigation are presented.